Departmental overview
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Our planned outcome
The department’s planned outcome for 2008–09 was:
Australian agricultural, fisheries and forestry industries that are based on sustainable management of and access to natural resources, are more competitive, self-reliant and innovative, have increased access to markets, are protected from disease and are underpinned by scientific advice and economic research.
From 1 July 2009 the department has two planned outcomes—see Table 2.
Our role and functions
To achieve our planned outcome, the department undertakes activities throughout the entire supply chain from producer to consumer.
We:
- work with the wider Australian Government to develop and deliver policies and programs that help our agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food industries
- deliver Australian Government programs and services to all sections of the community
- provide independent research, policy analysis, forecasts and advice on economic issues affecting our agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food industries
- protect and develop the natural resource base on which portfolio industries rely
- negotiate access to international markets for our agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food industries
- represent the Australian Government at international meetings relating to agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food issues
- provide independent scientific advice, social analysis and science-based quarantine and policy advice
- provide quarantine and inspection services and export certification that maintains Australia’s favorable pest and disease status.
Our stakeholders include:
- producers, processors and consumers of agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food processing products
- natural resource managers
- importers and exporters
- non-government interest groups
- research and development organisations
- rural communities
- travellers
- Australian, state and territory government ministers
- Australian, state, territory and local government organisations.
Our organisational structure
From 16 June 2008, the natural resource programs administered by the department have been closely integrated with the divisions responsible for related policy and program delivery. The portfolio’s response to climate change is now centralised through the Climate Change Division, which is also responsible for drought policy, rural adjustment and forestry.
The Policy Development (Economic and Cross-portfolio) Branch in the Corporate Policy Division had its first full year of operation in 2008–09. Its support for cross-portfolio and strategic policy work enabled us to focus resources and skills from across the department and the portfolio in the areas of greatest importance to Australia’s rural industries.
From 30 June 2009, all the department’s quarantine and biosecurity functions will be brought together in the new Biosecurity Services Group. This group integrates the activities of the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS); Biosecurity Australia; the biosecurity areas of the Product Integrity, Animal and Plant Health Division; and the Quarantine and Biosecurity Policy Unit. This structure is designed to deliver better risk management and better service along the biosecurity continuum (pre-border, border and post-border).
Legislation administered by the department
The department administers a wide range of legislation, including the:
- Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals Act 1994
- Australian Animal Health Council
- (Live-stock Industries) Funding Act 1996
- Australian Meat and Industry Live-stock Act 1997
- Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation Act 1980
- Dairy Produce Act 1986
- Egg Industry Service Provision Act 2002
- Farm Household Support Act 1992
- Fisheries Management Act 1991
- Forestry Marketing and Research and Development Services Act 2007
- Horticulture Marketing and Research and Development Services Act 2000
- National Cattle Disease Eradication Account Act 1991
- National Residue Survey Administration Act 1992
- Natural Resource Management (Financial Assistance) Act 1992
- Pig Industry Act 2001
- Plant Health Australia (Plant Industries) Funding Act 2002
- Primary Industries and Energy Research and Development Act 1989
- Quarantine Act 1908
- Quarantine Regulations 2000
- Regional Forest Agreements Act 2002
- Wheat Marketing Act 1989
- Wool Services Privatisation Act 2000.
Outcome and output group structure
In 2008–09, the department’s divisions, two bureaus and AQIS worked together and individually to deliver five outputs, as shown in Table 1.
In 2009–10, the department’s divisions, the two bureaus and the Biosecurity Services Group will deliver programs that align with our two outcomes, as shown in Table 2.
Three divisions not listed above (the Corporate Policy Division, Corporate Services Division and Corporate Finance Division) and the Quarantine and Biosecurity Policy Unit provide support across the department.
Corporate Policy Division
The department’s Corporate Policy Division supports individual divisions and the department as a whole. Its work in 2008–09 included parliamentary and ministerial liaison services; corporate communications; cross-divisional, whole-of-portfolio and whole-of-government policy advice; and secretariat services to ministerial and other high-level executive forums.
Activities in 2008–09
The division’s Policy Development (Economic and Cross-Portfolio) Branch led the department’s engagement on cross-portfolio issues such as biofuels, labour and skills, infrastructure and regional telecommunications. It also:
- coordinated policy advice on economic issues including the global financial crisis, non-forestry managed investment schemes, taxation and farm input costs
- coordinated meetings between the minister and the department, the minister’s briefings for Community Cabinet meetings, and his domestic travel program and associated departmental briefings
- managed the department’s legislation and regulation program
- led the portfolio’s implementation of the Australian Government’s deregulation agenda, which included identifying and removing redundant legislation and regulation
- planned and managed statutory appointments within the portfolio.
The Policy Development (Strategy and Support) Branch supported meetings of the Primary Industries and Natural Resource Management ministerial councils, the Primary Industries Ministerial Forum and the department’s Executive Management Team. It also:
- supported the National Management Group in a range of pest and disease responses
- administered competitive grants that funded numerous projects to increase leadership and representation by women and young people in rural industries; strengthen primary industry productivity; and build resilience within rural, regional and remote communities to the effects of a changing climate
- helped strengthen the department’s governance structures by establishing clearer reporting processes and enhancing the audit process, and establishing new committees on people management, business improvement, legislation and deregulation.
The Parliamentary and Media Branch split in July 2008 to form two branches—the Ministerial and Parliamentary Branch and the Corporate Communications Branch—to strengthen strategic support for the minister, his portfolio offices and the department.
The Ministerial and Parliamentary Branch focused on consolidating liaison and support for the minister and his portfolio offices, and coordinating government business and ministerial workflow in the department.
A priority was to align the quality, timeliness and style of work the department prepares more closely with the minister’s needs. The branch initiated guidelines and training to drive this process. It reviewed material prepared for the minister, producing a snapshot of performance showing strengths and areas for improvement. It also worked to improve departmental responses to parliamentary questions on notice.
The branch continued producing the critical weekly business meeting report: a round-up and forecast of departmental activity prepared for the minister and key staff.
The Corporate Communications Branch focused on supporting the department’s key communication goals, obligations and priorities. It continued to coordinate and deliver information to the media about portfolio activities, develop and distribute a range of print and online material for stakeholders about the department’s work and services, and develop and evaluate communication strategies and products.
Following a review of corporate services across the department, all communications staff and activities were centralised into the Corporate Communications Branch. The restructure brought together specialist communications staff from six areas of the department. This positions the department to take a more strategic approach to communications, and to make the best use of the department’s considerable communications expertise.
Outlook for 2009–10
The Corporate Policy Division will keep improving its performance in all core activities during the year ahead.
We will continue to coordinate the department’s involvement in whole-of-government and cross-portfolio policy. Significant policy issues in 2009–10 include the new National Broadband Network, infrastructure, and regional development.
The division will also continue to implement regulatory reforms and develop the leadership and representative capacity in rural industries of women, young people, Indigenous Australians and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.
New initiatives in 2009–10 include leading the department-wide rollout of a new ministerial and secretarial workflow system, MinCor4. We will also contribute to the Council of Australian Governments’ review of ministerial councils.
From 1 July the division will also take over support for the Eminent Scientists Group, Import Market Access Advisory Group and Import Risk Analysis Appeals Panel.
A new priority for the coming year will be consolidating and building on the gains achieved by centralising the department’s communications staff. This change should bring more strategic focus, synergy and efficiency in the department’s communications with stakeholders and other key audiences.
Corporate Services Division
The Corporate Services Division contributes to the department’s planned outcome by facilitating the operational efficiency and effectiveness of its activities. The division’s services include building and improving organisational systems and policies, supporting the secretary and the executive in managing change, and providing expert advice to senior staff, the minister and his office.
Corporate services include people and information management; administrative and office systems; information and communications technology (ICT); contracts management for outsourced services; and the collection and distribution of industries levies through the Levies, Contracts and Services Branch. External providers deliver ICT, corporate legal, fleet management and property services.
Activities in 2008–09
In 2008–09 the division evaluated the responses to our June 2008 request for tender for ICT services. Our aim was to secure a supplier that would allow us to take timely advantage of developments in technology and software, and would deliver consistently excellent services to our staff and clients throughout Australia.
On 26 June 2009, Electronic Data Systems Australia Pty Ltd replaced our previous supplier, CSG, as the department’s managed ICT service provider. The new supplier continues to deliver the same IT services previously provided by CSG. This includes:
- help desk services and management of all ICT-related problems
- provision of desktop computers, laptops, printers and other hardware
- provision of desktop computer movements, additions and changes
- management of the department’s servers and core network infrastructure
- new ICT project proposals, solution design and project execution.
Our Corporate Systems team completed a number of system upgrades and new system implementations during the year, including the installation and upgrade of the Enterprise Vault storage application. The system is designed to reduce storage overheads and the likelihood of exceeding mailbox limits, improve email performance and provide greater security for email.
The department responded to the results of a review of our corporate support areas by centralising human resources (HR) and information services.
We continued to maintain and improve our departmental risk management and business continuity framework by delivering training and discussion-based exercises and regularly updating documentation. The Australian National Audit Office used our business continuity documents as examples of best practice in its revised business continuity document.
Work continues on improving the department’s grants management guidelines and processes and implementation of reforms under the Commonwealth Grants Policy Framework, which includes establishing the new whole-of-government grants approval and reporting requirements.
We continued to provide improved guidance and support to departmental staff on freedom of information, Ombudsman and compensatory issues.
Several HR performance and development initiatives were completed: the management development program was evaluated and recommendations for the revised program are being considered; 360° feedback programs for both Senior Executive Service and senior officers were delivered; the DAFF capability framework and related training were introduced; the new starter induction program was reviewed and changes implemented; and a new graduate development program was implemented.
Attracting and retaining staff is a critical part of the division’s role. In 2008–09 the work of the Human Resources Branch included:
- continuing to monitor our performance management systems
- developing our learning and development strategy to ensure that we direct our activities to maintaining the workforce skills we need
conducting targeted recruitment programs.
The Human Resources Branch also assisted with the development of Indigenous and disabled employee networks and the department’s Reconciliation Action Plan.
Providing skills development and learning opportunities continued to be an important focus. Activities included development awards for 16 staff, through a competitive process, to undertake professional and personal development activities that will benefit both them and the department in the long term.
The Levies, Contracts and Services Branch continued to produce efficiencies and savings in the department’s travel arrangements through:
- using our travel provider’s online system for more than 80% of bookings
- choosing ‘best fare of the day’ options
- meeting the government’s target of 25% minimum usage of smaller airlines on the Canberra–Sydney route
implementing our preferred hotel program.
Levy revenue collected during the year totalled $608 million (2007–08: $595 million), which was within the agreed 1% of budget estimates. Regional staff conducted 1,690 levy records inspections and 37,207 account interventions, and collected an additional $4.3 million as a result (2007–08: 1,842 inspections, 40,120 interventions, and $4 million). They also identified 1,758 new or potential levy payers (2007–08: 876).
The levies team developed an overarching national compliance framework and revised the department’s levies record inspection guidelines and procedures to enhance quality assurance and ensure consistency of records inspections across commodities and regions.
Details on workforce planning (pages 165–67) and workplace relations (page 170) are in the ‘Management and accountability’ section of this report. Occupational health and safety (pages 207–08) and the disability strategy (pages 209–11) are discussed in the appendixes.
Outlook for 2009–10
In 2009–10 the Corporate Services Division expects to focus on new developments in the strategic direction of the department, especially in relation to the redevelopment of performance review, risk management and business planning processes.
We will continue to support the consolidation of the departmental restructure that took place in 2008–09. Structural changes will continue in 2009–10 with the establishment of the Biosecurity Services Group. The Human Resources Branch will continue to implement the divisional redeployment of staff.
We will finalise an overarching people development strategy to help focus and prioritise HR activity. The objectives of the draft strategy are:
- an innovative, sustainable and resilient culture
- informed decision-making
- effective delivery of fundamental people management services
- HR–senior management partnership.
The 2009–11 Collective Agreement has been accepted by staff through a ballot administered by the Australian Electoral Commission, and has passed the Workplace Authority’s ‘no disadvantage’ test. It came into effect on 27 July 2009.
The department will continue to identify reductions in ICT spending, as required under the Gershon review.
Corporate Finance Division
Activities in 2008–09
The division’s major annual activities in financial management are the timely delivery of the annual budget, the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 Certificate of Compliance, and the department’s financial statements.
Quarantine and Biosecurity Policy Unit
Activities in 2008–09
The Quarantine and Biosecurity Policy Unit provided secretariat services to the expert panel undertaking the independent review of Australia’s quarantine and biosecurity arrangements (the Beale review—see page xiii). The review panel’s report and the government’s preliminary response were released in December 2009.
As part of the department’s coordination of the ongoing implementation of the government response to the Callinan inquiry into the handling of the 2007 equine influenza outbreak (see page xxviii), the unit provided support for independent experts Professor Peter Shergold AC and Dr Kevin Dunn, Interim Inspector General of Horse Importation.
Other activities during the year included:
- in conjunction with Comcover and the Department of Finance and Deregulation, management of legal and discretionary claims against the Commonwealth arising from the equine influenza outbreak
- establishment of the Primary Industries Working Group on a National Agreement on Biosecurity (made up of Commonwealth and state and territory government officials) to oversee the development of the national agreement on biosecurity
- coordination of key interim institutional arrangements to commence on 1 July 2009, including establishment of the office of the Interim Inspector General of Biosecurity and incorporation of economic expertise into the Eminent Scientists Group
- coordination of the Import Market Access Advisory Group, responsible for assigning priority to import market access proposals and monitoring Biosecurity Australia’s progress against its work program
- provision of secretariat support to the Eminent Scientists Group in its consideration of two significant import risk analyses—Cavendish bananas from the Philippines and prawn and prawn products
- provision of secretariat support to the Import Risk Analysis Appeals Panel in its consideration of appeals against three import risk analyses—chicken meat, Cavendish bananas from the Philippines and unshu mandarins from Japan.
Outlook for 2009–10
A principles-based national agreement on biosecurity is expected to be finalised by the end of 2009. The details of the national biosecurity system will be outlined in schedules supporting the overarching agreement.
Draft biosecurity legislation is to be released for exposure in 2009 and introduced into parliament in 2010.
The department will progress the development of institutional arrangements for the implementation of the Beale review recommendations.
We expect the release of the government’s response to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Primary Industries and Resources report More Than Honey: the future of the Australian honey bee and pollination industries.
The Quarantine and Biosecurity Policy Unit will continue to provide ongoing secretariat support for the Eminent Scientists Group, Import Market Access Advisory Group and Import Risk Analysis Appeals Panel.
Financial resources
The department
In 2008–09 the department received $348.98 million in appropriation revenue from the Australian Government to contribute to the costs of delivering our outputs (2007–08: $370.63 million). We obtained a further $289.33 million in revenue (2007–08: $276.67 million) from external sources, particularly from activities undertaken by AQIS, with the balance largely from other services provided by the department.
In addition to our departmental appropriation, we administered $1742.19 million (2007–08: $3135.07 million) for programs delivered on behalf of the Australian Government. Of this, $597.54 million was collected as industry levies or other charges (2007–08: $594.90 million). The administered programs, which are aligned with our identified outputs, contributed significantly to the achievement of our planned outcome.
Figure 4 shows five-year trends in resourcing.
Biosecurity Australia
In 2008–09, Biosecurity Australia received $20.84 million in appropriation revenue from the Australian Government to contribute to the costs of delivering its output (2007–08: $21.12 million).
Staffing
The department’s employment profile was steady in 2008–09.
We employed 4605 full-time equivalent staff in Australia and overseas. Our people include policy officers, program administrators, scientists, economists, meat inspectors, veterinary officers and quarantine inspectors.
More than three-quarters of our Australian-based staff work outside Canberra. We have more than 250 sites, from Tasmania to the Torres Strait. Our staff operate in capital city and regional offices, major airports, mailing centres, ports, laboratories and abattoirs.
We have officers in Brussels, Paris, Rome, Moscow, Tokyo, Washington, Seoul, Beijing, Dubai, Bangkok, Jakarta and New Delhi to maintain relationships with trading partners and with international organisations such as the World Trade Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the Organisation for Economic Co‑operation and Development. We also have partnerships with regional neighbours such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Timor-Leste, through which we contribute to technical capacity building and market access projects.
Appendix 1 of this report details staffing statistics for 2008–09.
08 Oct 2009